Kildare lost the relegation/promotion game against Antrim and remained in the Christy Ring Cup in 2019.
In 2018 the Christy Ring Cup changed to an initial stage of two groups of four teams, having previously been held as a double elimination tournament.
The top two teams in the two groups advance to the semi-finals with the winners meeting in the final.
This is a change to the 2018 format, where the champions had to contest a promotion/relegation playoff against the second-from-bottom team in the Joe McDonagh Cup.
The winners become the 2019 Christy Ring champions, and are automatically promoted to the 2020 Joe McDonagh Cup.